Promotion of Agricultural Products
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Promotion of Agricultural Products (AGRIP
MULTI)
Call for proposals
AGRIP-MULTI-2023
Version 1.0
19 January 2023
Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
EUROPEAN RESEARCH EXECUTIVE AGENCY (REA)
REA.B-Green Europe
B.4 – Agri-Food promotion, Environmental Observation and Innovative Governance
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
0. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 3
1. Background ............................................................................................................................... 4
2. Objectives — Themes and priorities — Activities that can be funded — Expected impact ..................... 5
3. Available budget ........................................................................................................................ 8
4. Timetable and deadlines ............................................................................................................ 10
5. Admissibility and documents ...................................................................................................... 10
6. Eligibility .................................................................................................................................. 12
Eligible participants .................................................................................................................. 12
Consortium composition ........................................................................................................... 14
Eligible activities ...................................................................................................................... 14
Geographic location (target countries) ........................................................................................16
Duration ................................................................................................................................. 16
7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion ...........................................................................16
Financial capacity .................................................................................................................... 16
Operational capacity ................................................................................................................ 17
Exclusion ................................................................................................................................ 17
8. Evaluation and award procedure .................................................................................................18
9. Award criteria ........................................................................................................................... 20
10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements .....................................................................21
Starting date and project duration .............................................................................................21
Milestones and deliverables ....................................................................................................... 21
Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount ..............................................................21
Budget categories and cost eligibility rules ..................................................................................22
Reporting and payment arrangements ........................................................................................23
Certificates ............................................................................................................................. 23
Liability regime for recoveries ................................................................................................... 23
Pre-financing guarantees .......................................................................................................... 24
Provisions concerning the project implementation ........................................................................24
Non-compliance and breach of contract ......................................................................................25
11. How to submit an application .................................................................................................... 25
12. Help ...................................................................................................................................... 26
13. Important .............................................................................................................................. 27
2Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
0. Introduction
This is a call for proposals for EU action grants in the field of Information
provision and promotion measures concerning European agricultural
products (AGRIP Programme) implemented in the internal market and in third
countries through multi programmes.
The regulatory framework for this EU Funding Programme is set out in:
− Regulation 2018/1046 (EU Financial Regulation 1),
− the basic act Regulation 1144/2014 2,
− Commission Delegated Regulation 2015/1829 3 and
− Commission Implementing Regulation 2015/1831 4
The call is launched in accordance with the 2023 Work Programme 5 and will be
managed by the Research Executive Agency (REA) entrusted by the European
Commission with the management of the promotion policy.
The call covers the following topics in internal market:
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-ORGANIC
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-SUSTAINABLE
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLES
And the following topics in third countries:
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-TC-ALL
− AGRIP-MULTI-2023-TC-ORGANIC OR SUSTAINABLE
We invite you to read the call documentation carefully, and in particular this Call
Document, the Model Grant Agreement, the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Online
Manual, the AGRIP Programme Guide and the EU Grants AGA — Annotated Grant
Agreement.
1
Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 July 2018 on
the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, amending Regulations (EU) No
1296/2013, (EU) No 1301/2013, (EU) No 1303/2013, (EU) No 1304/2013, (EU) No 1309/2013, (EU)
No 1316/2013, (EU) No 223/2014, (EU) No 283/2014, and Decision No 541/2014/EU and repealing
Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012
2
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on
information provision and promotion measures concerning agricultural products implemented in the
internal market and in third countries and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 3/2008 (OJ L 317,
4.11.2014, p. 56–70).
3
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/1829 of 23 April 2015 supplementing Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on information provision and promotion
measures concerning agricultural products implemented in the internal market and in third countries
(OJ L 266, 13.10.2015, p. 3–8).
4
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1831 of 7 October 2015 laying down rules for
application of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on
information provision and promotion measures concerning agricultural products implemented in the
internal market and in the third countries (OJ L 266, 13.10.2015, p. 14–26).
5
Commission Implementing Decision C(2022)9498 final of 16.12.2022 concerning the adoption of the
work programme for 2023 and the financing decision for the implementation of the information
provision and promotion measures concerning agricultural products implemented in the internal market
and in third countries .
3Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
These documents provide clarifications and answers to questions you may have when
preparing your application:
− the Call Document outlines the:
− background, objectives, scope, activities that can be funded and the
expected results (sections 1 and 2)
− timetable and available budget (sections 3 and 4)
− admissibility and eligibility conditions (including mandatory documents;
sections 5 and 6)
− criteria for financial and operational capacity and exclusion (section 7)
− evaluation and award procedure (section 8)
− award criteria (section 9)
− legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements (section 10)
− how to submit an application (section 11)
− the Online Manual and the AGRIP Programme Guide outlines the:
− procedures to register and submit proposals online via the EU Funding
& Tenders Portal (‘Portal’)
− recommendations for the preparation of the application
− the AGA — Annotated Grant Agreement contains:
− detailed annotations on all the provisions in the Grant Agreement you
will have to sign in order to obtain the grant (including cost eligibility,
payment schedule, accessory obligations, etc).
You are also encouraged to visit the Promotion of Agricultural Products Portal to
consult the list of projects funded previously.
1. Background
The general objective of the AGRIP Programme is to enhance the competitiveness of
the EU agricultural sector.
The specific objectives of this Programme are to:
(a) increase awareness of the merits of EU agricultural products and of the high
standards applicable to the production methods in the EU
(b) increase the competitiveness and consumption of EU agricultural products
and certain food products and to raise their profile both inside and outside
the EU
(c) increase the awareness and recognition of EU quality schemes
(d) increase the market share of EU agricultural products and certain food
products, specifically focusing on those markets in third countries that have
the highest growth potential
(e) restore normal market conditions in the event of serious market disturbance,
loss of consumer confidence or other specific problems.
4Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
2. Objectives — Themes and priorities — Activities that can be funded —
Expected impact
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM
Information provision and promotion programmes aiming at increasing the awareness
and recognition of Union quality schemes mentioned in Article 5(4)(a) and (c) of
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014
or
Information provision and promotion programmes highlighting the specific features of
agricultural methods in the Union and the characteristics of EU agri-food products,
and quality schemes mentioned in Article 5(4)(d) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014.
Objectives
− For information provision and promotion programmes aiming at increasing the
awareness and recognition of Union quality schemes mentioned in Article
5(4)(a) and (c) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014 the objective is to increase
the awareness and recognition of the Union quality schemes, namely:
(a) quality schemes: protected designation of origin (PDO), protected geographical
indication (PGI), traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG) and optional quality
terms;
(b) the logo for quality agriculture products specific to the outermost regions of
the Union.
One of the expected results is to increase the levels of recognition of the logo
associated with the Union quality schemes by the European consumers and increased
knowledge of the information the quality schemes aim to provide. According to
Special Eurobarometer 520, only 16% of Europeans consumers recognize the logos of
products that benefit from a protected designation of origin (PDO), 22% recognise a
protected geographical indication (PGI), and 16% recognise a traditional specialty
guaranteed (TSG), these being the main Union quality schemes.
The expected ultimate impact is to increase awareness of the Union quality scheme
and to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of Union agri-food products
registered under a Union quality scheme, raise their profile and increase their market
share.
OR
− For information provision and promotion programmes highlighting the specific
features of agricultural methods in the Union and the characteristics of EU
agri-food products and quality schemes mentioned in Article 5(4)(d) of
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014.
The objective is to highlight at least one of the specific features of agricultural
production methods in the Union, particularly in terms of food safety, traceability,
authenticity, labelling, nutritional and health aspects, animal welfare, respect for the
environment and sustainability (including climate benefits such as the greenhouse gas
emissions reduction and/or increase in carbon removals) and the characteristics of
agricultural and food products, particularly in terms of their quality, taste, diversity or
traditions.
The expected impact is to increase the awareness of the merits of Union agricultural
products by the consumers and to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
5Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
the concerned Union agri-food products, raise their profile and increase their market
share.
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-ORGANIC
Information provision and promotion programmes aiming at increasing the awareness
and recognition of Union quality scheme on organic production method as defined in
Article 5(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014.
Objectives
The objective is to increase the awareness and recognition of the Union quality
scheme on organic production.
Information and promotion programmes on the Union quality scheme on organic
production method should be a key priority in the internal market since this scheme
provides consumers with assurances on the sustainability, quality and characteristics
of the product and the production process used, the environmental benefits they
generate and achieve added value for the products concerned and enhance their
market opportunities.
One of the expected results is to further increase the levels of recognition of the EU
organic logo by the European consumers and increased knowledge of the information
the organic logo aims to provide. According to Special Eurobarometer 520, 61% of
European consumers recognize the EU logo of organic farming.
The expected ultimate impact is to increase awareness of the Union quality scheme
on organic production and to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
organic products, raise their profile and increase their market share.
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-SUSTAINABLE
Information provision and promotion programmes increasing the awareness of Union
sustainable agriculture and animal welfare.
Objectives
The objective is to highlight the sustainability of Union agriculture, stressing its
beneficial role for the climate, the environment and animal welfare.
The production method(s) of the promoted product(s) shall cover at least two of the
areas of actions listed in Article 31(4) of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 while respecting
the conditions laid down in paragraph 5 of the said Article.
The expected ultimate impact is to increase the awareness of the Union sustainable
agriculture practices beneficial for the climate, the environment and animal welfare by
the European consumers and to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
sustainably produced agri-food products in the Union, raise their profile and increase
their market share.
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM-FRESH FRUIT AND VEGETABLES
Information and promotion programmes aiming at increasing the consumption of
fresh fruit and vegetables in the internal market in the context of balanced and
healthy dietary practices. Products eligible under this topic are those listed in Part IX
and fresh bananas in Part XI of Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the
European Parliament and of the Council.
Objectives
6Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
The Commission is committed to promoting balanced and healthy dietary practices.
Actions shall highlight the benefits of consuming fresh fruit and vegetables in a
balanced diet. The messages could notably focus on: aiming at having at least 5
portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables each day; the place of fruit and
vegetables in the food pyramid, beneficial impact of fruit and vegetable consumption
on health.
The objective is to increase the consumption of EU fresh fruit and vegetables by
informing consumers about balanced and healthy dietary practices.
The expected ultimate impact is to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
the concerned Union agri-food products, raise their profile and increase their market
share.
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-TC-ALL
Information provision and promotion programmes targeting any third country(ies).
Objectives
The information and promotion programmes shall target one or several third
countries.
The objectives of these programmes shall comply with the general and specific
objectives set out in Article 2 and the aims listed in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014 highlighting in particular the specific features of agricultural production
methods in the Union, particularly in terms of food safety, traceability, authenticity,
labelling, nutritional and health aspects, animal welfare, respect for the environment
and sustainability (including climate benefits such as the greenhouse gas emissions
reduction and/or increase in carbon removals), and the characteristics of agricultural
and food products, particularly in terms of their quality, taste, diversity or traditions.
The expected ultimate impact is to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
Union agri-food products, raise their profile and increase their market share in these
targeted countries.
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-TC-ORGANIC OR SUSTAINABLE
Information provision and promotion programmes concerning the organic products
under Union quality scheme defined in Article 5(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014 in any third country/ies
or
Information provision and promotion programmes increasing the awareness of Union
sustainable agriculture and animal welfare in any third country/ies.
Objectives
− For Information provision and promotion programmes concerning the organic
products under Union quality scheme defined in Article 5(4)(b) of Regulation
(EU) No 1144/2014 in any third country/ies the objective is to increase the
awareness and recognition of the Union quality scheme on organic production.
Information and promotion programmes on the Union quality scheme on organic
production method should be a key priority since this scheme provides consumers
with assurances on the sustainability, quality and characteristics of the product and
the production process used and the environmental benefits they generate, achieve
added value for the products concerned and enhance their market opportunities.
7Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
The expected ultimate impact is to increase awareness of the Union quality scheme
on organic production and to enhance the competitiveness and consumption of
organic products, raise their profile and increase their market share.
OR
− For Information provision and promotion programmes increasing the
awareness of Union sustainable agriculture and animal welfare in any third
country/ies the objective is to highlight the sustainability of Union agriculture,
stressing its beneficial role for the climate, the environment and animal
welfare.
The production method(s) of the promoted product(s) shall cover at least two of the
areas of actions listed in Article 31(4) of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 while respecting
the conditions laid down in paragraph 5 of the said Article. The expected ultimate
impact is to increase the awareness of the Union sustainable agriculture practices
beneficial for the climate, the environment and animal welfare by consumers and to
enhance the competitiveness and consumption of sustainably produced agri-food
products in the Union, raise their profile and increase their market share.
Activities that can be funded (scope)
The activities that can be funded under this call are information and promotion
campaigns covering products and schemes listed in Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014.
Fishery or aquaculture products may be part of a campaign only if the campaign
also covers at least one other eligible product listed in that Article.
More details on ‘Eligible activities’ are provided in section 6.
Expected impact
The expected ultimate impact of this call for proposals is to enhance the
competitiveness and consumption of EU agri-food products and/or to increase
awareness of the EU quality schemes, raise their profile and increase their market
share in the targeted countries.
For more information about the promotion of agricultural products, see website.
3. Available budget
The available call budget is EUR 82 400 000. This budget might be increased by
maximum 20%.
Specific budget information per topic can be found in the table below.
Internal market
Topic Topic budget Scope
1 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 4 200 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-IM* programmes aiming at increasing the
awareness and recognition of Union
quality schemes mentioned in Article
5(4)(a) and (c) of Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014
OR
8Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
Information provision and promotion
programmes highlighting the specific
features of agricultural methods in the
Union and the characteristics of EU agri-
food products, and quality schemes
mentioned in Article 5(4)(d) of
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014
2 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 14 000 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-IM-ORGANIC* programmes aiming at increasing the
awareness and recognition of Union
quality scheme on organic production
method as defined in Article 5(4)(b) of
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014
3 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 14 000 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-IM- programmes increasing the awareness
SUSTAINABLE* of Union sustainable agriculture and
animal welfare
4 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 10 000 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-IM-FRESH programmes aiming at increasing the
FRUIT AND consumption of fresh fruit and
VEGETABLES*, ** vegetables in the internal market in the
context of balanced and healthy dietary
practices.
Products eligible under this topic are
those listed in Part IX and fresh
bananas in Part XI of Annex I to
Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the
European Parliament and of the Council.
* All visual information and promotion material used must include a reference to the national Food Based
Dietary Guidelines16 (FBDG) of the targeted Member State/s for the promoted product/s.
** Multi programme proposals on ‘Fruit and vegetables' for the internal market are also eligible under topic
AGRIP-MULTI-2023-IM. In that case, the message of campaigns on fruit and vegetables under topic
AGRIPMULTI-2023-IM shall be different than highlighting the benefits of consuming fruit and vegetables
within a balanced and proper diet (except if fruit and vegetables are associated with (an)other product(s)).
Third countries
Topic Topic budget Scope
4 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 29 200 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-TC-ALL* programmes targeting any third
country(ies)
5 — AGRIP-MULTI- EUR 11 000 000 Information provision and promotion
2023-TC-ORGANIC* programmes concerning the organic
, ** OR products under Union quality scheme
SUSTAINABLE* defined in Article 5(4)(b) of Regulation
(EU) No 1144/2014 in any third
country/ies
OR
Information provision and promotion
programmes concerning the organic
products under Union quality scheme
defined in Article 5(4)(b) of Regulation
(EU) No 1144/2014 in any third
country/ies
* Programmes targeting least-developed countries (LDCs) according to UN list available at
https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/wp-content/uploads/sites/45/publication/ldc_list.pdf should
9Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
be coherent with EU development objectives Applicants will be asked to submit their own assessment
explaining why the proposed promotion programme will not adversely affect EU development policy goals in
the least-developed country targeted by the promotion programme. This assessment will be examined
under the award criterion ”Relevance”.
** Multi programmes promoting organic products in third countries shall apply under topic AGRIP-MULTI-
2023-TC-ORGANIC. They cannot apply under topic AGRIP-MULTI-2023-TC-ALL, except if organic products
are combined with other products.
The availability of the call budget still depends on the adoption of the budget 2023 by
the EU budgetary authority.
We reserve the right not to award all available funds or to redistribute them between
the call priorities, depending on the proposals received and the results of the
evaluation.
If for a given topic there are not enough proposals on the ranked list to exhaust the
whole foreseen amount, the remaining amount may be reallocated to other topics
according to the following criteria:
(a) the total of the remaining foreseen amount for the four topics for the internal
market will be allocated to the projects targeting the internal market with the
highest quality score, irrespective of the topic for which they have applied
(b) the same approach will be taken for the two topics for third countries
(c) if the foreseen amount is still not exhausted, the remaining amounts for both
internal market and third countries will be merged and assigned to projects
with the highest quality score, irrespective of the priority and topic for which
they have applied.
4. Timetable and deadlines
Timetable and deadlines (indicative)
Call opening: 19 January 2023
Deadline for submission: 20 April 2023 – 17:00:00 CET
(Brussels)
Evaluation: April-August 2023
Information on evaluation results: September 2023
GA signature: November-December 2023
5. Admissibility and documents
Proposals must be submitted before the call deadline (see timetable section 3).
Proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal
Electronic Submission System (accessible via the Topic page in the Search Funding &
Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.
10Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
Proposals (including annexes and supporting documents) must be submitted using
the forms provided inside the Submission System ( NOT the documents available
on the Topic page — they are only for information).
Proposals must be complete and contain all the requested information and all
required annexes and supporting documents:
− Application Form Part A — contains administrative information about the
participants (future coordinator and beneficiaries) and the summarised budget
for the project (to be filled in directly online)
− Application Form Part B — contains the technical description of the project (to
be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed and then
assembled and re-uploaded)
− Part C (to be filled in directly online) containing additional project data
− mandatory annexes and supporting documents (to be uploaded):
− detailed budget table (template available in the Submission System)
− CVs of the project coordinator and eventually of project team
− list of all EU-funded projects for the last 3 years with indication of the
previous projects for which the proposal is a continuation according to
Article 1(4) of the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/1829
(template available in Part B)
− activity reports of last year
− supporting documents demonstrating that the applicants are
organisations or bodies as referred to in Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU)
No 1144/2014 (see section below)
− for each applicant, documentation proving that it meets the
representativeness criteria set out in Article 1 of the Commission
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/1829 (see section below).
Please note that the amounts entered into the summarised budget table (filled in
directly online) must correspond to the amounts calculated in the detailed budget
table. In case of discrepancies, the amounts in the online summarised budget table
will prevail.
At proposal submission, you will have to confirm that you have the mandate to act
for all applicants. Moreover you will have to confirm that the information in the
application is correct and complete and that the participants comply with the
conditions for receiving EU funding (especially eligibility, financial and operational
capacity, exclusion, etc.). Before signing the grant, each beneficiary will have to
confirm this again by signing a declaration of honour (DoH). Proposals without full
support will be rejected.
Your application must be readable, accessible and printable.
Proposals are limited to maximum 70 pages. Evaluators will not consider any
additional pages.
You may be asked at a later stage for further documents (for legal entity validation,
financial capacity check, bank account validation, etc).
For more information about the submission process (including IT aspects), consult
the Online Manual.
11Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
6. Eligibility
Eligible participants
In order to be eligible, the applicants must:
− be legal entities (public or private bodies)
− be established in an EU Member States (including overseas countries and
territories (OCTs))
− be eligible organisations or bodies as referred to in Article 7(1) of Regulation
(EU) No 1144/2014:
− trade or inter-trade organisations, established in a Member State and
representative of the sector or sectors concerned in that Member State,
and in particular the interbranch organisations as referred to in Article
157 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 and groups as defined in point 2
of Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012, provided that they are
representative for the name protected under the latter Regulation which
is covered by that programme
− EU trade or inter-trade organisations representative of the sector or
sectors concerned at EU level
− producer organisations or associations of producer organisations, as
referred to in Articles 152 and 156 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013
that have been recognised by a Member State or
− agri-food sector bodies the objective and activity of which is to provide
information on, and to promote agricultural products and which have
been entrusted, by the Member State concerned, with a clearly defined
public service mission in this area; those bodies must have been legally
established in the Member State in question at least two years prior to
the date of the call for proposals referred to in Article 8(2).
The abovementioned proposing organisations may submit a proposal provided that
they are also representative of the sector or product concerned by the proposal,
complying with conditions set out in Articles 1(1) or 1(2) of Commission Delegated
Regulation (EU) 2015/1829 of 23 April 2015, namely:
− trade or inter-trade organisation, established in a Member State or at EU level,
as referred to in Article 7(1)(a) and (b) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014
respectively, are deemed to be representative of the sector concerned by the
programme:
− where it accounts for at least 50% as a proportion of the number of
producers, or 50% of the volume or value of marketable production of
the product(s) or sector concerned, in the Member State concerned or
at EU level or
− where it is an interbranch organisation recognised by the Member State
in accordance with Article 158 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the
European Parliament and of the Council or with Article 16 of Regulation
(EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council
− a group as defined in point 2 of Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of
the European Parliament and of the Council and referred to in Article 7(1)(a) of
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014, are deemed to be representative of the name
protected under Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 and covered by the
programme, where it accounts for at least 50% of the volume or value of
marketable production of the product(s) whose name is protected
12Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
− a producer organisation or an association of producer organisations as referred
to in Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014 are deemed to be
representative of the product(s) or sector concerned by the programme where
it is recognised by the Member State in accordance with Articles 154 or 156 of
Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 or with Article 14 of Regulation (EU) No
1379/2013;
− an agri-food sector body as referred to in Article 7(1)(d) of Regulation (EU) No
1144/2014 are deemed to be representative of the sector(s) concerned by the
programme by means of having representatives of that product(s) or sector
among its memberships.
Lower representativeness thresholds than 50% may be accepted if the proposing
organisation demonstrates in the submitted proposal that there are specific
circumstances, including the evidence on the structure of the market, which would
justify treating the proposing organisation as representative of the product(s) or
sector concerned.
Beneficiaries must register in the Participant Register — before the submitting the
proposal — and will have to be validated by the Central Validation Service (REA
Validation). For the validation, they will be requested to upload documents showing
legal status and origin.
Other entities may participate in other consortium roles, such as associated partners,
sub-contractors, third parties giving in-kind contributions, etc (see section 13).
Applicants can receive AGRIP funding for information and promotion measures
promoting the same product or scheme, in the same geographical market, only for
two consecutive occasions. 6
Specific cases
Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under
their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives
have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees
for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal
persons 7.
Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members may participate
as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’ 8. Please note that
if the action will be implemented by the members, they should also participate (either
as beneficiaries or as recipients of financial support to third parties, otherwise their
costs cannot be covered by the action).
EU restrictive measures — Special rules apply for certain entities (e.g. entities subject
to EU restrictive measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union
(TEU) and Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU) 9 and entities
covered by Commission Guidelines No 2013/C 205/05 10). Such entities are not eligible
to participate in any capacity, including as beneficiaries, associated partners, third
6
See Article 1(4) Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/1829.
7
See Article 197(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2018/1046.
8
For the definitions, see Articles 187(2) and 197(2)(c) EU Financial Regulation 2018/1046.
9
Please note that the EU Official Journal contains the official list and, in case of conflict, its content
prevails over that of the EU Sanctions Map.
10
Commission guidelines No 2013/C 205/05 on the eligibility of Israeli entities and their activities in the
territories occupied by Israel since June 1967 for grants, prizes and financial instruments funded by the
EU from 2014 onwards (OJEU C 205 of 19.07.2013, pp. 9-11).
13Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
parties giving in-kind contributions, subcontractors or recipients of financial support to
third parties (if any).
For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment
and Financial Capacity Assessment.
Consortium composition
Proposals must be submitted by a consortium having at least two organisations
referred to in points (a), (c) and (d) of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014,
which must be from at least two Member States and comply with the conditions on
representativeness for the product of the sector promoted.
Proposals by single applicants are NOT allowed, except for the case of EU trade or
inter-trade organisations that are representative at EU level for the product or sector
promoted (point (b) of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014). In this case,
mono-beneficiary applications are allowed.
Eligible activities
Eligible activities are the ones set out in section 2 above.
The information and promotion campaigns may cover the following activities:
1. Management of the project
2. Public relations
− PR activities
− Press events
3. Website, social media
− Website setup, updating, maintenance
− Social media (accounts setup, regular posting)
− Other (mobile apps, e-learning platforms, webinars, etc)
4. Advertising
− Print
− TV
− Radio
− Online
− Outdoor
− Cinema
5. Communication tools
− Publications, media kits, promotional merchandise
− Promotional videos
6. Events
− Stands at trade fairs
− Seminars, workshops, B2B meetings, trainings for trade/cooks, activities
in schools
14Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
− Restaurant weeks
− Sponsorship of events
− Study trips to Europe
7. Point-of-sale (POS) promotion
− Tasting days
− Other: promotion in retailers' publications, POS advertising
Tastings and distribution of samples are not allowed in the context of campaigns
on responsible drinking implemented in the internal market; these activities are
however acceptable if ancillary to and supportive of the provision of information
measures on the quality schemes and organic production method.
Activities should be complementary to and should not overlap with activities financed
through the Common Agricultural Policy and/or though the funds or instruments of
the different Member States supporting at the national level the promotion of
agricultural products. Projects must be designed to complement other private or
public activities implemented by the proposing organisation(s) in the targeted
markets; synergies with such activities must be ensured.
Projects should take into account the results of previous co-financed campaigns
clearly describing their impact and reasons for resubmission.
The complementarities must be described in the project proposal (Part B of the
Application Form).
Projects must comply with EU policy interests and priorities (such as environment,
climate, social, development and trade policy, etc).
Proposals must:
(a) comply with EU law governing the products concerned and their marketing and
have an EU dimension
(b) for proposals in the internal market covering one or more schemes as referred
to in Article 5(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014: focus on the(se)
scheme(s) in their main EU message. When in this programme, one or several
products illustrate(s) the(se) scheme(s), it/they must appear as a secondary
message in relation to the main EU message
(c) for messages conveyed by a multi programme containing information on the
impact on health:
− in the internal market: comply with the Annex to Regulation (EC) No
1924/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council 11, or be
accepted by the national authority responsible for public health in the
Member State where the operations are carried out
− in third countries: be accepted by the national authority responsible for
public health in the country where the operations are carried out
(d) for proposals proposing to mention origin or brands: comply with the rules as
referred to in Chapter II of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1831
11
Regulation (EU) No 1924/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on
nutrition and health claims made on foods (OJ L 404, 30.12.2006, p.9–25).
15Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
For the purposes of assessing the eligibility of the activities, the following information
must be provided:
− for proposals covering national quality schemes: documentation or a reference
to publicly available sources that prove that the quality scheme is officially
recognised by the Member State 12
− for proposals targeting the internal market and relaying a message on proper
dietary practices or responsible alcohol consumption: description how the
proposed programme and its message(s) are in line with the relevant national
rules in the field of public health in the Member State where the programme
will be carried out (including references or documentation in support of this
claim).
Financial support to third parties is allowed for grants under the following conditions:
− the financial support is given only to entities that are linked to the
13
beneficiary and identified already in the project proposal
− the project specifies the maximum amount of financial support for each third
party and the criteria and procedures for giving the financial support
− the beneficiaries ensure that the costs charged to the action are limited to the
costs actually incurred by those third parties and that the entities comply with
the principle of sound financial management and keep records on their costs.
Geographic location (target countries)
Proposals must relate to activities targeting one or several countries covered by the
chosen topic of the call.
Duration
Projects should have a minimum duration of 12 and a maximum duration of 36
months.
Proposals should specify the duration of the action.
7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
Financial capacity
Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement
the projects and contribute their share. Organisations participating in several projects
must have sufficient capacity to implement all these projects.
The financial capacity check will be carried out on the basis of the documents you will
be requested to upload in the Participant Register during grant preparation (e.g. profit
and loss account and balance sheet, business plan, audit report produced by an
approved external auditor, certifying the accounts for the last closed financial year,
etc). The analysis will be based on neutral financial indicators, but will also take into
account other aspects, such as dependency on EU funding and deficit and revenue in
previous years.
12
Article 16 of the Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17
December 2013 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural
Development (EAFRD) and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p.
487).
13
‘Linked entities’ are entities that have a link with the beneficiary, in particular, a legal or capital link,
which is neither limited to the action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation.
16Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
The check will normally be done for all beneficiaries, except:
− public bodies (entities established as public body under national law, including
local, regional or national authorities) or international organisations
− if the individual requested grant amount is not more than EUR 60 000.
If we consider that your financial capacity is not satisfactory, we may require:
− further information
− an enhanced financial responsibility regime, i.e. joint and several responsibility
for all beneficiaries (see below, section 10)
− (one or more) pre-financing guarantees (see below, section 10)
or
− request that you are replaced or, if needed, reject the entire proposal.
For more information, see Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment
and Financial Capacity Assessment.
Operational capacity
Applicants must have the know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully
implement the projects and contribute their share (including sufficient experience in
projects of comparable size and nature).
Applicants must demonstrate that at least one natural person working under
employment contract with the applicant (or assigned to the action on basis of an
equivalent appointing act, secondment against payment or on the basis of other types
of direct contracts, e.g. covering provision of services) will be appointed as a project
manager. The project manager must have at least three years’ experience in project
management.
The operational capacity will be assessed together with the ‘Quality’ award criterion
on the basis of the competence and experience of the applicants and their project
teams, including operational resources (human, technical and other) or, exceptionally,
the measures proposed to obtain it by the time the task implementation starts.
If the evaluation of the award criterion is positive, the applicants are considered to
have sufficient operational capacity.
Applicants will have to show their capacity via the following information:
− general profiles (qualifications and experiences) of the staff responsible for
managing and implementing the project (e.g. CV of the project manager, CVs
core project team, etc)
− list of EU-funded projects for the last 3 years
− applicants’ activity reports of the last year.
Additional supporting documents may be requested, if needed to confirm the
operational capacity of any applicant.
Exclusion
17Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
Applicants which are subject to an EU exclusion decision or in one of the following
exclusion situations that bar them from receiving EU funding can NOT participate 14:
− bankruptcy, winding up, affairs administered by the courts, arrangement with
creditors, suspended business activities or other similar procedures (including
procedures for persons with unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)
− in breach of social security or tax obligations (including if done by persons with
unlimited liability for the applicant’s debts)
− guilty of grave professional misconduct 15 (including if done by persons having
powers of representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or
persons who are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)
− committed fraud, corruption, links to a criminal organisation, money
laundering, terrorism-related crimes (including terrorism financing), child
labour or human trafficking (including if done by persons having powers of
representation, decision-making or control, beneficial owners or persons who
are essential for the award/implementation of the grant)
− shown significant deficiencies in complying with main obligations under an EU
procurement contract, grant agreement, prize, expert contract, or similar
(including if done by persons having powers of representation,
decisionmaking- or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for
the award/implementation of the grant)
− guilty of irregularities within the meaning of Article 1(2) of Regulation No
2988/95 (including if done by persons having powers of representation,
decisionmaking- or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for
the award/implementation of the grant)
− created under a different jurisdiction with the intent to circumvent fiscal, social
or other legal obligations in the country of origin or created another entity with
this purpose (including if done by persons having powers of representation,
decisionmaking- or control, beneficial owners or persons who are essential for
the award/implementation of the grant).
Applicants will also be refused if it turns out that 16:
− during the award procedure they misrepresented information required as a
condition for participating or failed to supply that information
− they were previously involved in the preparation of the call and this entails a
distortion of competition that cannot be remedied otherwise (conflict of
interest).
8. Evaluation and award procedure
The proposals will have to follow the standard submission and evaluation
procedure (one-stage submission + one-step evaluation).
An evaluation committee (assisted by independent outside experts) will assess all
applications. Proposals will first be checked for formal requirements (admissibility,
and eligibility, see sections 5 and 6). Proposals found admissible and eligible will be
14
See Articles 136 and 141 of EU Financial Regulation 2018/1046.
15
Professional misconduct includes: violation of ethical standards of the profession, wrongful conduct
with impact on professional credibility, false declarations/misrepresentation of information,
participation in a cartel or other agreement distorting competition, violation of IPR, attempting to
influence decision-making processes or obtain confidential information from public authorities to gain
advantage.
16
See Article 141 EU Financial Regulation 2018/1046.
18Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
evaluated (for each topic) against the operational capacity and award criteria (see
sections 7 and 9) and then ranked according to their scores.
For proposals with the same score (within a same topic) a priority order will be
determined according to the following approach:
For every group of ex aequo proposals, starting with the highest scored group, and
continuing in descending order, proposals which allow for diversification in terms of
products or targeted markets will be prioritised.
This means that, between ex aequo applications within the same topic, priority will be
given to applications which are not yet represented in the higher ranked proposals
firstly in terms of products, secondly in terms of targeted market.
If these criteria cannot be applied, then projects with highest score for individual
award criteria will be selected.
We will first compare projects scores for the award criterion ‘Relevance’. When these
scores are equal, priority will be based on the scores for the criterion ‘Impact’. When
these scores are equal, priority will be based on the scores for the criterion ‘Quality’.
This principle also applies, mutatis mutandis, to merged ranked lists constituted
following the reallocation of foreseen amounts across the call topics (see point (c)
below).
Criteria for reallocation of foreseen amounts
If for a given topic there are not enough proposals on the ranked list to exhaust the
whole foreseen amount, the remaining amount may be reallocated to other topics
according to the following criteria:
(a) the total of the remaining foreseen amount for the five topics for the internal
market shall be allocated to the projects targeting the internal market with the
highest score, irrespective of the topic for which they have applied;
(b) the same approach shall be taken for the four topics for third countries;
(c) if the foreseen amount is still not exhausted, the remaining amounts for both
internal market and third countries shall be merged and assigned to projects
with the highest score, irrespective of the priority and topic for which they
have applied.
The order of the ranked lists will be strictly followed.
Applicants will be informed about the evaluation result (evaluation result letter).
Successful proposals will be invited for grant preparation; the other ones will be put
on the reserve list or rejected.
No commitment for funding — Invitation to grant preparation does NOT constitute
a formal commitment for funding. We will still need to make various legal checks
before grant award: legal entity validation, financial capacity, exclusion check, etc.
Grant preparation will involve a dialogue in order to fine-tune technical or financial
aspects of the project and may require extra information from your side. It may also
include adjustments to the proposal to address recommendations of the evaluation
committee or other concerns. Compliance will be a pre-condition for signing the grant.
If you believe that the evaluation procedure was flawed, you can submit a complaint
(following the deadlines and procedures set out in the evaluation result letter). Please
19Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
note that notifications which have not been opened within 10 days after sending are
considered to have been accessed and that deadlines will be counted from
opening/access (see also Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions).
9. Award criteria
The award criteria for this call are as follows:
− Relevance (25 points):
− Relevance of the proposed action to the general and specific objectives
listed in Article 2 of the Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014, to the aims
listed in Article 3 of the same Regulation, as well as to priorities,
objectives and expected results announced under the relevant thematic
priority of the call.
− Contribution of the proposed information provision and promotion
project in respect of the objectives of the climate and environmental
ambition of the CAP, the Green Deal and Farm to Fork strategies, in
particular concerning sustainability of production and consumption.
− Quality and relevance of the market analysis.
− Coherence of the action strategy, specific objectives, target groups and
key messages.
− EU message of the campaign.
− Quality (50 points):
− Suitable choice of activities with respect to objective and action
strategy, adequate communication mix, synergy between activities.
− Concise description of activities and deliverables.
− Quality of the proposed evaluation methods and indicators.
− Suitable allocation of budget in relation to objectives and scope of
activities.
− Clear description of the estimated costs and accuracy of the budget.
− Consistency between the estimated costs and deliverables.
− Project organisation and management structure.
− Internal quality control mechanisms and risk management.
− Impact (25 points):
− Impact of project at EU level.
− Justification of the overall level of investment.
Award criteria Minimum Maximum
pass score score
Relevance 15 25
Quality 30 50
Impact 15 25
Overall (pass) scores 60 100
20Call: AGRIP-MULTI-2023
Maximum points: 100 points.
Individual thresholds per criterion: 15/25, 30/50 and 15/25 points.
Overall threshold: 60 points.
Proposals that pass the individual thresholds AND the overall threshold will be
considered for funding — within the limits of the available call budget. Other
proposals will be rejected.
10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements
If you pass evaluation, your project will be invited for grant preparation, where you
will be asked to prepare the Grant Agreement together with the EU Project Officer.
This Grant Agreement will set the framework for your grant and its terms and
conditions, in particular concerning deliverables, reporting and payments.
The Model Grant Agreement that will be used (and all other relevant templates and
guidance documents) can be found on Portal Reference Documents.
Starting date and project duration
The project starting date and duration will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data
Sheet, point 1). Normally the starting date will be after grant signature. It should not
be later than 6 months after the date of entry into force of the grant agreement.
Retroactive application can be granted exceptionally for duly justified reasons reasons
— but never earlier than the proposal submission date.
Project duration: minimum 12, maximum 36 months.
Milestones and deliverables
Milestones are not applicable for AGRI calls. Screens/sections related to milestones
can be left empty.
The deliverables for each project will be managed through the Portal Grant
Management System and will be reflected in Annex 1 of the Grant Agreement.
Form of grant, funding rate and maximum grant amount
The grant parameters (maximum grant amount, funding rate, total eligible costs, etc)
will be fixed in the Grant Agreement (Data Sheet, point 3 and art 5).
Project budget: No limit. The grant awarded may be lower than the amount
requested.
The grant will be a budget-basedmixed actual cost grant (actual costs, with unit cost
and flat-rate elements). This means that it will reimburse ONLY certain types of costs
(eligible costs) and costs that were actually incurred for your project (NOT the
budgeted costs). For unit costs and flat-rates, you can charge the amounts calculated
as explained in the Grant Agreement (see art 6 and Annex 2 and 2a).
The grant will be a mixed actual cost grant. This means that it will reimburse ONLY
certain types of costs (eligible costs) and ONLY costs you actually incurred for your
project (NOT the budgeted costs).
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